GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
POLL ANALYSES
November 17, 2003
Rush Limbaugh a Well-Known but Highly Polarizing Figure Conservatives,
liberals
differ in opinions of talk-show host
by Mark Gillespie
PRINCETON, NJ -- Radio talk-show host and commentator Rush Limbaugh is
scheduled to return to his nationally syndicated show today. For the past
five
weeks, Limbaugh has been in a recovery program, after admitting to an
addiction
involving prescription painkillers. It is unclear to what degree the
extensive
news coverage of Limbaugh's addiction -- which he announced live on his
radio
show after a series of media re****ts linked him to a federal drug
investigation
in South Florida -- may have hurt his popularity with Americans. But a new
Gallup Poll conducted Nov. 10-12 shows that just 34% of Americans at this
time
hold a favorable view of Limbaugh, while 51% hold an unfavorable view.
Of course, it should be noted that Limbaugh's conservative views and
controversial statements in the past may well be a contributing factor in
those
ratings. For instance, 51% of political conservatives hold a favorable
opinion
of Limbaugh -- compared to just 12% of liberals. At the same time, 35% of
conservatives now hold an unfavorable view of Limbaugh (along with 75% of
liberals).
Limbaugh's radio show has often been credited with helping to influence
the
Republican takeover of Congress in the 1994 elections. To be sure, he
still has
a significant degree of influence with Republicans and is a favorite
target of
criticism from Democrats, as reflected in the widely differing views of
Limbaugh among Republicans, independents, and Democrats:
Opinion of Rush Limbaugh Nov 10-12, 2003
Republicans
Favorable 60%
Unfavorable 29%
Independents
Favorable 33%
Unfavorable 49%
Democrats
Favorable 10%
Unfavorable 74%
Limbaugh's appeal is also slightly higher among men than among women.
Limbaugh Most Well-Known Among Political Commentators Tested
Limbaugh's success over the years has created a market for political
commentary
in the media. However, other commentators have yet to achieve Limbaugh's
level
of recognition among average Americans.
As an example, the same poll asked Americans their opinions of several
other
"darlings" of the media -- those often called on to comment on political
issues, as well as to write best selling books outlining their views of
life in
America and the world -- Ann Coulter, Al Franken, and Dennis Miller.
Conservative commentator and author Coulter appears to be a relatively
unknown
personality to most Americans, despite her having had three best selling
books
and her flamboyant appearance on television talk shows. Over
three-quarters of
Americans don't know enough about her to have an opinion. Unlike Limbaugh,
however, her favorable and unfavorable ratings are roughly identical, at
11%
and 10%, respectively. Coulter is not well-known even by conservatives,
among
whom she receives a 16% favorable and 7% unfavorable rating. Among
liberals,
the ratings are essentially reversed, with 16% unfavorable and 8%
favorable.
Liberal commentator and author Franken is a little better known than
Coulter,
perhaps because of his years on "Saturday Night Live," but he is not
nearly as
well-known as is his nemesis Limbaugh (about whom Franken wrote the book
"Rush
Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot"). More than 6 out of 10 Americans don't know
enough about Franken to have either a favorable or an unfavorable opinion,
although his image skews toward the negative side among those who do know
him
-- 16% of Americans have a favorable opinion of Franken, while 22% hold an
unfavorable opinion.
Interestingly, awareness of Franken is lower among the young and the old
-- 61%
of those aged 18-29 say they have never heard of him, and 60% of those 65
and
older say the same. This is likely because those in the middle -- aged
30-64,
with an emphasis on those aged 30-49 -- are most likely to have watched
Franken's television appearances in the 1970s, '80s and '90s on "Saturday
Night
Live."
Franken's move into political commentary -- which even includes an idle
comment
about a possible Senate campaign in the future -- is more recent and
equally
polarizing. Among liberals, 29% have a favorable opinion and 12% have an
unfavorable opinion of Franken. Among conservatives, 9% have a favorable
opinion and 29% an unfavorable one.
Comedian, talk-show host, and erstwhile football commentator Dennis Miller
is
relatively well known; 61% of Americans know him well enough to have an
opinion. While describing himself as conservative, Miller might best be
described as an "equal op****tunity" commentator -- criticizing both
liberal and
conservative views equally. For this reason, his favorable ratings are
relatively high among Americans (41% favorable and 20% unfavorable); he
enjoys
a 48% favorable rating among liberals (and moderates), while 34% of
conservatives share that opinion. His unfavorable opinion rating is
consistent
among all three groups at around 20%, while conservatives are slightly
more
likely to have never heard of him (36%, compared to 27% of liberals and
23% of
moderates). Miller is much better known and more favorably evaluated by
men
than by women.
There has been speculation about Miller running for the Senate in
California
next year, possibly as a Republican. At this point, however, Miller's
image is
no more favorable among Republicans than it is among Democrats.
Winfrey, McGraw More Popular
While talk-show queen Oprah Winfrey and protégé Dr. Phil McGraw have
occasionally taken views that might be considered controversial, both shy
away
from political commentary. As a result, their images are significantly
more
positive than their contem****aries in the political field. Winfrey
regularly
rates as one of the most admired women in Gallup's annual polls, so it
comes as
little surprise that 73% of Americans hold a favorable opinion of her.
There is
a difference in her ratings among various political ideologies (81%
favorable
among liberals, 75% among moderates, and 68% among conservatives), but
they are
far less polarized than those of more politically oriented personalities.
McGraw's rise in popularity is more recent, as shown by his 48% favorable
rating -- higher than anyone's other than Winfrey in this survey. Just 16%
hold
an unfavorable view, and 26% have never heard of him, leaving room for
favorable opinions -- or unfavorable opinions -- of him to rise over time.
In
addition, McGraw is not a polarizing personality in political terms --
with
consistent favorable ratings of 44% among conservatives, 49% for
moderates, and
52% among liberals.
Both Winfrey and McGraw, not surprisingly given their position as daytime
talk-show hosts, generate much more positive reactions from women than
from
men. Oprah Winfrey has an 84% favorable rating among women, compared to a
61%
favorable rating among men (30% of men, interestingly, give Winfrey an
unfavorable rating). McGraw has a 58% favorable rating among women and a
35%
favorable rating among men.
Survey Methods
These results are based on telephone interviews with a randomly selected
national sample of 1,004 adults, 18 years and older, conducted Nov. 10-12,
2003. For results based on this sample, one can say with 95% confidence
that
the maximum error attributable to sampling and other random effects is ±3
percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and
practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias
into
the findings of public opinion polls.
Next, we'd like to get your overall opinion of some talk show hosts,
political
commentators, and authors. As I read each name, please say if you have a
favorable or unfavorable opinion of these people -- or if you have never
heard
of them. First, ... How about... [RANDOM ORDER]
2003 Nov 10-12
A. Ann Coulter (2003 Nov 10-12)
Favorable 11%
Unfavorable 10%
Never heard of 69%
No opinion 10%
B. Al Franken (2003 Nov 10-12)
Favorable 16%
Unfavorable 22%
Never heard of 49%
No opinion 13%
C. Rush Limbaugh (2003 Nov 10-12)
Favorable 34%
Unfavorable 51%
Never heard of 9%
No opinion 6%
D. Dr. Phil McGraw (2003 Nov 10-12)
Favorable 48%
Unfavorable 16%
Never heard of 26%
No opinion 10%
E. NOT ASKED
F. Oprah Winfrey (2003 Nov 10-12)
Favorable 73%
Unfavorable 20%
Never heard of 1%
No opinion 6%
(1992 Mar 26-29)
Favorable 78%
Unfavorable 14%
Never heard of 2%
No opinion 6%
G. Dennis Miller (2003 Nov 10-12)
Favorable 41%
Unfavorable 20
Never heard of 30
No opinion 9%
(1992 Mar 26-29)
Favorable 16%
Unfavorable 9%
Never heard of 63%
No opinion 12%
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